Chapter 41 (First Release)
Upon hearing Ning Wanwan's lie about agreeing to be Zhao Rui's girlfriend, the system breathed a sigh of relief, and the disordered data gradually returned to normal.
Logically speaking, whether the host wants to be in a relationship or not is none of its business, but the system just feels inexplicably anxious and unable to accept it.
The system thought that it was probably because the host shouldn't have had these unexpected interactions with Zhao Rui, the minor villain, in the original storyline, so it was worried that the plot might undergo uncontrollable changes.
Fortunately, it was just a lie.
But as soon as the pressure eased, the system quickly realized another problem.
[Host, you...you actually lied to me.]
The system's electronic voice sounded somewhat incredulous, and Ning Wanwan was also stunned for a moment, feeling a little confused.
"Why do you think I wouldn't lie...? Everyone lies sometimes, isn't that normal?"
The system was somewhat surprised and incoherent: [No, no… host, I just didn’t expect this…]
As a system with a well-developed emotional module, it naturally knows that it is inevitable for humans to lie in life.
But, but it's really strange to put it on the host!
The host is such a soft-spoken and easy-going person, he must have been driven to desperation by Zhao Rui! This guy is really too hateful! The system thought angrily, planning to find an opportunity to cause trouble for Zhao Rui.
Although the system is not allowed to interfere in principle... the host has been wronged so much!
Ning Wanwan was completely unaware of the system's thoughts, and she didn't pay much attention when the system suddenly quieted down.
After all, the system has always had this kind of personality, easily startled and with emotions even more intense and fluctuating than hers.
However, she roughly understood why the system was so surprised.
Ning Wanwan's timidity and poor acting skills do not mean she cannot lie; it's just that she doesn't want to tell lies unless absolutely necessary.
Her severe social anxiety, to some extent, determined that she had a soft personality; she would avoid things as much as possible and do things to appease others.
However, Zhao Rui was really annoying; she didn't like being forced to do things she didn't want to do at all.
Zhao Rui might have some feelings for her, but using threats to get her to agree made Ning Wanwan very resistant.
Given Zhao Rui's family background, she couldn't refuse him now regardless of the consequences. If she insisted on confronting him head-on, she could imagine that the situation she would face would only be more difficult than it is now.
An ordinary person would probably panic, but for Ning Wanwan, who knows the plot, resolving this matter is not difficult.
One word: wait.
Although Zhao Rui's actions annoyed Ning Wanwan, at least he hadn't actually done anything to harm her. Since she couldn't reason with him, she could barely tolerate the situation and decided to just try to fool him.
First, stall for time and find a reason to keep him in line for a while. Once that crucial plot point is reached, Zhao Rui probably won't even have the energy to cause her trouble.
He's just a minor villain who's arrogant now and even has the idea of threatening others, but he's destined to be trampled underfoot by the protagonist in the future.
Given Zhao Rui's domineering personality, being trampled underfoot by someone he used to look down on would probably be worse than death for him.
Ning Wanwan glanced at Zhao Rui with a hint of pity, then, remembering that she was just cannon fodder in the story, even worse than Zhao Rui, she immediately looked away and focused on her textbook.
Why think about all this nonsense? It's better to get a good score first! If an ordinary person can't unleash their talent and get into the top tier, they'll just have to rely on studying to get into a decent ordinary university!
Zhao Rui was completely unaware of the impending crisis.
"Ning Wanwan, you have no chance to back out now."
He was still laughing, satisfied with the promise that would be fulfilled soon, and didn't think for a second that the girl would dare to lie to him about something like this.
Even if it was a lie, he didn't care. He was confident that with Ning Wanwan's lack of background, she wouldn't have the ability to back out if she wanted to.
Even if someone like him is rich and powerful now, how could he possibly imagine that his peaceful life would change drastically in no time, and that his family background, no matter how powerful, would be reshuffled?
Zhao Rui wanted to say something, but Ning Wanwan didn't even look up: "I need to study, so be quiet."
"Fine." Zhao Rui thought about what the other person had said before about wanting to prepare for the exam properly, frowned unhappily, and actually didn't go any closer.
He behaved himself after that and didn't bother Ning Wanwan anymore. Ning Wanwan was relieved that her goal had been achieved.
During class, Zhao Rui felt a bit stuffy, so he casually opened the window. Ning Wanwan was looking at the questions when she smelled the tempting aroma of ripe fruit wafting in on the breeze.
It's even more concentrated than before.
Zhao Rui, who was in a good mood, didn't take it seriously: "I haven't seen any fruit trees planted at the school lately."
Out of a sliver of empathy for someone who was also cannon fodder, Ning Wanwan thought for a moment and reluctantly and tactfully reminded her, "You... you should pay more attention to the changes around you lately."
Zhao Rui, of course, wouldn't listen and was still laughing: "How could there be any changes? The temperature has just dropped a bit recently."
Everything is normal.
Ning Wanwan didn't say anything more. Anyway, she had already kindly reminded him, and it was none of her business if the other party didn't listen and courted disaster.
She glanced out the window, picked up her pen, and continued writing while looking down at the book.
However, the weather seems to have gotten a bit chilly lately.
...
When class ended, Ning Wanwan noticed that Lin Ruowei was not there. She didn't pay much attention at first, but then she suddenly heard Lin Ruowei's two followers talking.
"Where did Miss Lin go? I can't find her."
"I think she said she went to the grove..."
Ning Wanwan paused for a moment, then suddenly thought of the stray cats in the school's grove.
The day they went to the karaoke bar, Lin Ruowei had specifically told her to catch the little black cat and bring it to her, but she didn't do as she was told. Later, Lin Ruowei used the cat-feeding incident as a pretext to drag her into a fight with Chen Wu, almost putting her in a terrible situation...
The possibility that Lin Ruowei, in this situation, suddenly felt a surge of kindness and went to feed the cats without any purpose is almost zero.
So what could she possibly want to do in the grove now?
Ning Wanwan felt a sense of worry rising in her heart, and she was restless, preoccupied with this matter.
She hesitated for a moment, then stood up and left the classroom before the break was over.
The sweet, ripe fruit scent grew stronger on the wind blowing in her face, but she couldn't tell where it was coming from. Ning Wanwan didn't have time to smell it properly; she was only focused on running towards the grove of trees.
Just as she was about to reach the grove, she almost bumped into Lin Ruowei, whom she was looking for.
"What are you doing?" Lin Ruowei, who had just come out of the grove, crossed her arms and raised her eyebrows.
Ning Wanwan calmed her rapid breathing, glanced at Lin Ruowei a few times, but didn't see the little stray cat in her hands.
Once she was sure no cat had been caught, Ning Wanwan relaxed a little. Seeing that Lin Ruowei was still waiting for her answer, she whispered an excuse, "Someone in class is looking for you."
Lin Ruowei's attention was indeed diverted: "Looking for me."
Ning Wanwan nodded and glanced at the grove behind Lin Ruowei, but did not see any cats.
That's strange. There are so many cats, surely you should be able to spot one or two, right?
She couldn't help but silently observe Lin Ruowei again.
Lin Ruowei pouted, her face full of impatience: "What you're doing has nothing to do with me. It was Shen Wu who sent all those cats away."
She had originally planned to use the cats to cause more trouble, but it seems she's out of options now.
"...sent them away," Ning Wanwan said, catching the key word and repeating it in surprise.
"Yeah, she really is nice to these stray cats, but she kept that black one." Lin Ruowei chuckled, ignoring the stunned Ning Wanwan, and walked away.
Ning Wanwan paused for a moment, then turned around and headed towards the grove of trees, leaving behind the black bird.
The grove, which usually has many stray cats and looks quite lively, was unusually quiet and deserted when I stepped in today.
Ning Wanwan looked around but didn't see any cats. It seemed that Lin Ruowei was right; the stray cats had been taken away.
But what does leaving the black one mean?
Ning Wanwan's gaze fell on the large rock; this was the only spot she hadn't checked. She crouched down and peered into the crevice, and sure enough, she met a pair of beautiful, jewel-like cat eyes.
As soon as Ning Wanwan opened her mouth to say "Little Cat," before she could finish speaking, the little black cat hidden in the shadows of the rock crevice suddenly popped out and jumped into her arms.
Ning Wanwan, who was still squatting, was stunned when she suddenly found a ball of black, fluffy fur, like coal, in her arms.
She peered into the crevice several more times, and after confirming that there was only a little black cat, she stood up, holding the kitten in one hand.
"Is it really just you left?" Ning Wanwan stroked the little black cat, wondering what was going on.
Lin Ruowei said that the stray cats were all taken away by Chen Wu, which should be true, since the displeasure on Lin Ruowei's face at the time was not faked.
Why keep only this little black cat? Shouldn't it have been sent away along with the kitten if it was going to be given away?
Ning Wanwan didn't quite believe that Shen Wu, who was doing a good deed, would deliberately miss out on a weak little stray cat. There was no need for that, was there?
That's really strange.
[Host, you might be overthinking it. In the storyline, Chenwu is supposed to adopt this little black cat with special potential and then give it to the male lead.]
[Shenwu didn't give the black cat away like other stray cats, probably because she would adopt it.]
"That makes sense." Listening to the system's analysis, Ning Wanwan nodded, her confusion resolved.
This little black cat also has a role in the story and will be a great help to the male lead in the future, so it's normal for it to receive special treatment.
However… a new question arose in Ning Wanwan's mind.
“If Shenwu wants to adopt it, why doesn’t she just take it with her instead of leaving it alone in the grove?”
Logically speaking, taking it directly would be the most reasonable course of action.
System: [It might just be a minor incident we're unaware of... but don't worry, host, this black cat is destined to be adopted by the female lead.]
Ning Wanwan hummed in agreement. After realizing that this was a normal development, she put down the little black cat and wanted to go back before class.
"Meow!" The little black cat meowed anxiously when it saw Ning Wanwan was about to leave, its little paws tightly gripping the girl's clothes, afraid that if it loosened its grip even slightly, the girl would leave again.
Ning Wanwan looked down and saw the little black cat staring at her longingly, its emerald green eyes filled with reluctance and longing.
"Meow meow." Noticing the girl looking at it, the little black cat meowed even softer and more pitifully, its soft, fluffy tail gently hooking around her finger.
Look, I've already learned to be very, very good.
Take me away, take me away, I want to be with you.
It couldn't speak, so it could only use tricks it learned from other cats to charm the girl and try to win her over.
Ning Wanwan's fingertips were tickled by the cat's tail.
She asked somewhat uncertainly, "Do you... want to come back with me?"
"Meow meow." The fluffy little black ball nuzzled her even more affectionately, its tail tip swaying gently, expressing its approval through its actions.
Ning Wanwan: "...Ah."
She didn't know what to say for a moment.
The kitten is really cute, and she likes it very much.
But she never intended to keep this unusual little black cat.
Ning Wanwan gently stroked its little head and then brushed its paws away.
"Sweetie, you have a better place to go."
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Author's note: Wanwan: Kittens are so cute.
Wanwan: But I won't raise one.
Thank you to all the little angels who voted for me or watered my plants with nutrient solution between 17:11:13 on December 26, 2023 and 16:18:51 on December 27, 2023!
Thank you to the little angels who watered the nutrient solution: You Shang Cai (20 bottles); San Wan Sui (2 bottles);
Thank you so much for your support! I will continue to work hard!
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